Do we know anything about the band's "representative"? Could it be someone employed by Spotify or a Spotify-adjacent AI farm? Seeing that the "band" is on multiple DSPs it seems as if they're trying to cover their tracks, releasing through Distrokid etc
There are audio artifacts you can hear but as the technology gets better, those might be less and less apparent. Rick Beato did a video on these guys and gave examples of said artifacts that's worth checking out.
I’m interested in what those “artifacts” are- I can tell you a lot of them in writing, and I can also attest to the fact that some have become less apparent in students essays I read- that or they are becoming better at using the prompts 🤷🏻♀️
You ask is the Velvet Sundown good? What songwriter / composer didn’t steal, lift, was “inspired” by greats from the past? None. AI is doing it faster. Music is math. AI is good at math, it’s created from the sum total of “inspired by” human input. The question should be, isn’t the entire human race owed a royalty?
I’m not anti-AI generally. I could see it being useful in certain processes. I think there are two problems here. First, are artist owed royalties if their music is in a training set and largely responsible for the sound an algorithm outputs. I think so. Second, the scale is the real issue here. If you could create 100k tracks in ten minutes, then art becomes more a game of volume than discernment, which I don’t think makes sense
I think the merits of AI generated music is something we should discuss, and the author does point out how other music technology has disrupted and changed the music scene, often with detractors.
However, the breaking point for me is that whoever is behind the Velvet Sundown lied. They tried to pretend that the very obviously AI generated band was not AI generated. Lying is not good. It is unethical. Therefore, the creator of this fake band should not be supported. If they had been honest upfront, we could be having a different conversation.
Absolutely agree, but, this is moving at the speed of chips and us mere humans can’t keep up. It’s worse than lying about your prompts which should at least be mandatory. (I’d like a warning label, personally.) I don’t even agree with the word “merits”. I once played on a “library music” session back when you needed musicians to create “elevator music”. We got paid. Then the machines played and fewer got paid. Now, no one gets paid except the “rent seekers” basking in money on Silicon Beach as musicians continue to search for new revenue streams. It’s serious and now is the time for the conversation you mention. We are inspired by each other’s past creative endeavors but AI is profiting from that human inspiration and humans don’t get to go along for the ride. There are merits to AI in other fields, leave the poets and songwriters alone. Most are already struggling.
Do we know anything about the band's "representative"? Could it be someone employed by Spotify or a Spotify-adjacent AI farm? Seeing that the "band" is on multiple DSPs it seems as if they're trying to cover their tracks, releasing through Distrokid etc
I have no idea. It’s possible but I’d guess it’s not the streaming services
Article about Spotify’s games..
https://harpers.org/archive/2025/01/the-ghosts-in-the-machine-liz-pelly-spotify-musicians/
Yes this is why I bring up the point that it could very well be someone associated at some level with Spotify
Interesting. How do consumers know if something is AI created?
Some ppl claim to have tools to detect it. Not sure how good they are. Deezer seems to be the only service trying to label things as created with AI
There are audio artifacts you can hear but as the technology gets better, those might be less and less apparent. Rick Beato did a video on these guys and gave examples of said artifacts that's worth checking out.
I’m interested in what those “artifacts” are- I can tell you a lot of them in writing, and I can also attest to the fact that some have become less apparent in students essays I read- that or they are becoming better at using the prompts 🤷🏻♀️
For me the tell is always the voice. It warbles in a certain way
I was wondering this too! I don’t want to inadvertently listen to something that’s AI generated.
It makes me wonder if I ever HAVE listened to a song repeatedly that was AI generated!
Oh same!! I do not want to give them any streams!
You ask is the Velvet Sundown good? What songwriter / composer didn’t steal, lift, was “inspired” by greats from the past? None. AI is doing it faster. Music is math. AI is good at math, it’s created from the sum total of “inspired by” human input. The question should be, isn’t the entire human race owed a royalty?
I’m not anti-AI generally. I could see it being useful in certain processes. I think there are two problems here. First, are artist owed royalties if their music is in a training set and largely responsible for the sound an algorithm outputs. I think so. Second, the scale is the real issue here. If you could create 100k tracks in ten minutes, then art becomes more a game of volume than discernment, which I don’t think makes sense
"What songwriter / composer didn't steal, lift, was "inspired" by greats from the past?"
This is a fundamental misunderstanding of the creative process and how it works.
Agree. We all create anew out of a vacuum. I invented the A chord just yesterday.
I think the merits of AI generated music is something we should discuss, and the author does point out how other music technology has disrupted and changed the music scene, often with detractors.
However, the breaking point for me is that whoever is behind the Velvet Sundown lied. They tried to pretend that the very obviously AI generated band was not AI generated. Lying is not good. It is unethical. Therefore, the creator of this fake band should not be supported. If they had been honest upfront, we could be having a different conversation.
Absolutely agree, but, this is moving at the speed of chips and us mere humans can’t keep up. It’s worse than lying about your prompts which should at least be mandatory. (I’d like a warning label, personally.) I don’t even agree with the word “merits”. I once played on a “library music” session back when you needed musicians to create “elevator music”. We got paid. Then the machines played and fewer got paid. Now, no one gets paid except the “rent seekers” basking in money on Silicon Beach as musicians continue to search for new revenue streams. It’s serious and now is the time for the conversation you mention. We are inspired by each other’s past creative endeavors but AI is profiting from that human inspiration and humans don’t get to go along for the ride. There are merits to AI in other fields, leave the poets and songwriters alone. Most are already struggling.
I KNEW there was SOMETHING "WRONG" with the Velvet Sundown when I listened a couple of weeks ago.
I guess I really knew when I started searching for more info about the band and could find nothing.
Wow a Mother's Finest reference! Great band 👍
But the likes are bots themselves 😎